Hot Jam – Tobacco Road
This was exactly what the world needed back in 1975, another version of “Tobacco Road”. It’s one of my favorite songs ever & has been covered by every man & his dog worldwide. This 45 is a version of it by a band that I’d never heard of & a label I’d never seen before I bought a box of unplayed stock copies for peanuts a few years back. It quickly became one of my favorite versions & I love how it touches on so many genres. For example you get a bit of blues (the flip is a solid cover of “Stormy Monday”), some barroom boogie, it’s a touch garagey & the breakdown even gets little psychish. Whoever Hot Jam were, they could definitely play & they produced a pretty tight 45 with this release. Does anyone know anything about the band or label? The only info is that it was mfg. & dist. by Kajac Record Corp., Carlisle, IA. Cool label design, but a couple years on & this is still the only 45 I’ve seen on this label & the 45 is pretty un-googleable except for it popping up on the odd set sale list from time to time. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
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26 Comments
I’ll tell you folks all you want to know about the group and the label. I am Harold Luick owner of KJAC records still living in Carlisle, Iowa. I was overseeing the whole dang thing. We were using Marshall amps.
Interesting discography!
http://www.cmshowcase.org/KajacKorner/kajac_discography.htm
Good to hear from you Harold. An interesting discography indeed. The photo gallery is also great.
Hey . . it was a fluke to see this site and a link to Hot Jam since I have rarely searched the web for “Hot Jam” . . Let me know if you need any addtional copies or any of the other recordings we did . . I still have them. I was the drummer for Hot Jam. We played throughout the midwest until early 1980’s.
Alan
Hi Alan
Great to hear from you. I am curious about how the other 45s sound. I really like the “Tobacco Road” 45 & have been DJing it out at the odd gig & also giving it to a few people as presents, they like it too.
Kris
Kris:
We did another 45 with Harold at Kajac a year after Tabacco Road and then did recordings in Minneapolis, Chicago, and St. Louis over the next few years. One of my sons took several tapes and mixed to a CD a few years back . . . I will have him forward a copy . . .send me an address.
Thanks! Alan
I was listening to the radio today and heard the song Tobacco Road; Hot Jam’s was definitely better (had that ZZ Top feel to it). I remember seeing Hot Jam everytime they played in Keystone, Iowa; I was a high school student from Belle Plaine (1976-1979). Any chance that a 45 copy of Tobacco Road is available? They had some great promo posters, too.
Dale
Dale:
Send me an e-mail address and I will find a copy for you . . .
Alan
Alan,
Here’s my email address:
daledvorak@juno.com
Dale
Alan,
I was a huge fan of Hot Jam’s and saw you guys play many times throughout Iowa. I am interested in getting a copy of the CD you are referring to if you still have one available.
Thanks,
Doug Kelly
Alan,
Here is my e-mail address.
dkotis@gmail.com
Thanks,
Doug Kelly
I would like to get in contact with Al, Jerry, or Dave, of Hot Jam. Have not seen them since their split. Very interested in picking up any and all studio recordings even if payment is required. Fan from Lakeside Ballroom. Maybe Harold Luick would have some way of reaching them.
thanks,
Lance, I’ll have a look & see if I still have an email address for Alan.
This message is for Alan Lund…I am the daughter of Roger Mathies who played in the band with you. My uncle came across this posting somehow! Do you have any of tapes and/or CD’s your sons did? I would love to get a copy for my dad.
Thanks!!
Stacy Lund
Greetings! Jerry here from Hot Jam. I replaced the original guitarist (Roger Mathies) in June of 1977. The band split in June of 1980. During this time we recorded a number of songs in various studios around the midwest. One such session was done in Des Moines at a studio called Studio 2000 (no longer in business). It was a quick demo tape of originals and one cover…Tobacco Road. The session was a very hastily done, live in the studio, no overdubs, no production, etc. If you’re interested I would be happy to send you an MP3 of this song. You can contact me via my email address. I think it’s great that you have this website. Hot Jam fans can look forward to some new and exciting re-releases of HJ music in the coming months as we are currently in talks concerning this after all these years.
Kind Regards,
Jerry Carberry
Hey guys. I am a huge Hot Jam fan and remember many nights at Lakeside Ballroom in Guttenberg, IA :-) I would be interested in ANY CDs or MP3s anyone would have of the group! Please send me an email. Thanks.
Here’s a link that maybe of interest:
[URL=”http://hotjam.bandcamp.com/album/hot-jam”]http://hotjam.bandcamp.com/album/hot-jam[/URL]
http://hotjam.bandcamp.com/album/hot-jam
Does anyone have any Hot Jam promo posters?
Alan, I am interested in getting a copy of the CD you are referring to if you still have one available. Thanks
daledvorak@juno.com
Dale…Search Facebook for Hot Jam. There are a few posters there.
Jerry,
I couldn’t find the posters you mentioned. Would you send a link? Thanks
I have seen them many times at Groveland Park near Tyndall, SD back in the 70’s. I printed band posters for the park owners and have some “promo ads” with Hot Jam on them.
Lindy, do you know how I could get a poster? Do you have any contacts?
Here’s everything that I have: http://hotjam.bandcamp.com
Also: https://facebook.com/HotJam1977
Thanks Troy – this is what I was looking for.